Infection Prevention & Control

The Department plans, implements, and monitors activities for the prevention and control of infections in the hospital.

It was initially named Infection Prevention & Control Unit (IPCU) and was established by Thelma Tupasi, MD of the Section of Infectious Diseases, in coordination with the Nursing & Patient Care Services Division (NPCSD). It was later incorporated to the Total Quality Services Division (TQSD) in June 2008.

In 2015, IPCU became the current Infection Prevention & Control Department (IPCD), directly under the Office of the Medical Director.

Over the years, IPCD has been implementing comprehensive hospital-wide infection prevention and control programs to ensure that patients, visitors, medical and house staff, employees, and outsourced service providers are protected from infection which may be acquired within the hospital:

• Conducting of outbreak investigations
• Coordination and reporting of cases of communicable diseases, including emerging infections, to the Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH)
• Monitoring of healthcare worker (HCW) compliance to proper hand hygiene, care bundles for Healthcare- Associated Infections (HAI) prevention and the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE)
• Monitoring of water quality and environmental sanitation and cleaning
• Surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) and surgical site infections (SSI)

The IPCD also spearheads regular education and training activities among HCWs to raise awareness on strategies to prevent and control infection. Among these activities are the ICC Week Celebration, Ebola Preparedness Training, Skills Fair on Healthcare-Associated Infection Prevention, Infection Control Quiz Bee, and the Infection Control & Hand Hygiene Awards.

The Department has been at the forefront of the MakatiMed response against the COVID-19 pandemic since its first detection of the virus in December 2019. Several activities and initiatives have been done, including the creation of a database for all patients tested since January 2020; the preparation of COVID-19-related reports for the Medical Director and for webcast sessions of hospital staff; as well as coordination with various government entities, such as the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) for laboratory results, RITM being the only laboratory during that time capable of performing COVID-19 Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing, the DOH Regional Epidemiology & Surveillance Unit (RESU) and the Makati City Epidemiology & Surveillance Unit (CESU) for patient endorsement, transfer, and discharge.
It has also developed various infographics related to COVID-19 protocols, prevention, and control with the help of the Creative, Communications & Sales Services Division (CCSSD). The Risk Exposure Assessment, through the help of the Information & Communications Technology Division (ICTD), was automated in 2020 to ensure better monitoring and assessment of possible exposure of MakatiMed healthcare workers and employees.

The Infection Prevention & Control Department is a recipient of several local and international awards:

1. Hospital Best Practices in Infection Prevention & Control Awards from the Philippines Hospital Association (PHA)

The competition is anchored on three (3) objectives: to elevate every hospital’s awareness level on the importance of infection control and prevention of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs); to ensure that hospitals and other healthcare facilities are properly implementing infection prevention and control practices; and to encourage every hospital to maintain the highest standards in HAI prevention and control.

• • 2014 – Overall Winner of the country’s first ever Hospital Best Practices in Infection Prevention & Control for Level 3 Hospitals
  • 2016 – Awardee for Best Infection Prevention & Infection Control Program and Runner-Up in the following categories: Best in Healthcare Waste Management, Best in Outbreak Management, Best in Surveillance of Antibiotic Resistance, and Best in Environmental Cleaning & Decontamination. MakatiMed won from among 283 entries submitted by 59 hospitals all over the country.
  • 2018 – Overall Winner of Hospital Best Practices in Infection Prevention & Control Year 5 and Best in Environmental Cleaning & Decontamination for Level 3 Hospitals. There were 29 participating level 3 hospitals.

2. Philippine Antibiotic Awareness Week (PAAW) of the Department of Health (DOH) 2016

The Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Warrior is an award given to any individual or organization who performed excellently in their practice and dedicated their lives to the implementation of programs, interventions, or strategies that strongly advocate the responsible use of antibiotics in the battle against antimicrobial resistance.

• • 2016 – 3^rd Placer for the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Warriors: Best Practices to Combat AMR Video.

3. 42^ndWorld Hospital Congress 2018 by the International Hospital Federation (IHF)

MakatiMed received a Merit Award for IHF/Austco Excellence for Quality & Safety and Patient-Centered Care in Brisbane, Australia. MakatiMed was the only healthcare institution from the Philippines that made the cut in its category.

Department Manager:
Janice C. Caoili, MD